End of the Year/End of Columbia Shows! - May 5, 2013
As graduation and the prospect of "real life" looms on the horizon, I'm happy to announce two phenomenally exciting concerts coming up next week. First we have the Columbia ElectroAcoustic Ensemble's Spring concert this Monday evening. After yet another semester of hard work and great rehearsals, the CEAE is ready for this latest installment of original compositions, an Andrew Cyrille cover, and who knows what else, not to mention homemade instruments and all the electronic goodness you've come to expect!
Then on Friday the 10th, I will be having my Senior Thesis Concert in 112 Dodge! An outstanding roster of musicians has agreed to help me out in celebration of everything we've done at Columbia over the past 4 years, and I'm terribly excited to share it all with you. The CEAE will perform again but with different material, so if you miss us the first time around make sure to catch this show. Also joining me will be good friends and collaborators like Chris Pitsiokos, Ole Mathisen, Carl Majeau, and even a 5-piece chamber ensemble to perform one of my recent compositions! It will be a truly special night, and I sincerely hope to bring the whole community together for one last hurrah.
Columbia ElectroAcoustic Ensemble Spring Concert (Facebook Event Link)
Sulzberger Parlour (3rd Floor Barnard Hall
Monday, May 6th - show starts at 8pm
(Free Jazz is up first, we'll probably hit between 8:30 and 8:45)
Ian's Senior Thesis Concert (Facebook Event Link)
112 Dodge Hall (Enter from College Walk)
Friday, May 10th - show starts at 9pm
Recordings! Glorious Recordings! - February 6, 2013
At long last, it is my supreme pleasure to offer up for the internet masses the Columbia ElectroAcoustic Ensemble's first and only recorded material thus far. Freshly-pressed through gmail and the interwebs, this live recording represents last semester's output, from myself and my diligent and exceptionally talented cohorts in the CEAE - Carl Majeau, Mark Micchelli, Asidan Miles, Jacob Sunshine, and David Halpern.
Our work culminated here in two original pieces, countless new instruments and algorithmic noisemakers, and one laptop-orchestra-turned-drone-jam, all of which you'll find alongside comprehensive Liner Notes in one sleek, convenient zip file! We were exceptionally pleased with the way the performance, and indeed the semester, turned out. So give it a listen and let us know what you think. Download an extra copy for a friend while you're at it.
The New and Newsworthy - February 5, 2013
Once again I find myself scrambling to recount all the musical goings-on of the past weeks. First up is the tremendously exciting premiere of my newest software instrument, in the improvised piece "1/1" for the Columbia Jazz Composers Collective's annual concert, featuring my good friend Chris Pitsiokos on alto.
This instrument is the continuation and reimagination of a tool I built for the ElectroAcoustic Ensemble last semester, a live sampler that grabs different sized buffers of actively recorded sound and serves them up for editing and manipulation, all in real-time. This newest iteration has been built around the capabilities of Keith McMillen Instrument's brilliant QuNeo, an open-source controller that is the most expressive and versatile of any I've had the chance to play. I will post the audio of this performance as soon as I can, but in the meantime I'll be continuing to develop the instrument and learning how to play it in different contexts and groups (especially alongside my drumming).
Later at that same show, Chris and I joined Mark Micchelli for his composition "Sonata." Its always a blast playing a piece of Mark's, but this one especially with its perplexing metric manipulations and fantastic sense of humor. Unfortunately there's nothing concrete on the horizon right now, but with any luck we'll be playing some more shows as that trio so stay tuned!
CEAE Performance this Saturday! - December 6, 2012
It's been far too long since I've posted up here, but fortunately not for a lack of things to talk about! I had a couple of great performances with Chris Pitsiokos last month, exploring his new improvisational/compositional system, and generally having a good time. Check us out at the Freedom Garden here (although the sound cuts out about half way through for some reason). I've also been hacking away, with other members of the ElectroAcoustic Ensemble and at the excellent Monthly Music Hackathon, on some wonderful tools and toys with which to play, just in time for the holidays!
In fact, with another semester wrapping up here at Columbia, its time for end-of-term performances! There's been a lot of great music floating around the last weeks, and this Saturday I'll have the great pleasure of introducing our very own Columbia ElectroAcoustic Ensemble for its very first public performance! Everyone's been shedding and hacking away like crazy to get ready for this show; all of the pieces are originals, and all of them feature homemade instruments, systems, and other sorts of weird and wonderful things we've built.
We've got noisemakers, an algorithmic drum machine, a Presidential Election simulator, something that sounds like a phone call from hell, and more! And, if you really can't make it out, we'll do our best to get audio and video up after finals. The show should be a real treat, hope to see you out there!
Columbia ElectroAcoustic Ensemble (Facebook Event Link)
Featuring All Original Everythings!
Miller Theater
Saturday, December 8th - show starts at 8pm
(Latin Jazz and Free Jazz Ensembles up first, we should be on around 9.)
Columbia ElectroAcoustic Ensemble's First Rehearsal - September 17, 2012
Last Monday saw the fantastic realization of a musical ambition at least three years in the making. Since coming to Columbia, the incredible inspiration and education provided by the folks up at the Computer Music Center has driven many of my own musical exploits as well as those of my peers and collaborators. Now, however, we have enlisted the resources of both the CMC and the Jazz Performance Program in the creation of Columbia's first ElectroAcoustic Ensemble. A diverse collection of multi-disciplinary yet like-minded musicians, the CEAE is a dream of mine actualized by some very motivated students and some very cooperative faculty, every one of which has my gratitude.
But without further ado, what you've all been (hopefully) waiting for: the music. Each week's rehearsal will be made available right here for your sonic enjoyment. We don't want your money, of course; all we ask is that if you enjoy it, you let other people know. If you think we should do x y and z, why don't you let us know? And don't forget to check back each week for more music, free of charge.
CEAE Rehearsal - 2012.09.10
The Website is Now Actually Up! - August 21, 2012
Hello World Wide Web! If you are reading this then that means something went right. Unlike the last few posts, which were written while the website was in development, this one here is genuine, the real deal. Take a look around, listen to some tunes, keep posted on the latest gigs, and let me know what you think!
Back on the Rock - August 15, 2012
After a phenomenal trip I'm finally back on Whidbey Island, aka The Island, The Rock, etc… Upon arrival I've regrouped with my old chums in the newly-branded South Whidbey Jazz Collective, performing a couple times a weekend in Langley for coffee and sandwiches. I've added a few new recordings to the works page, of impromptu get-togethers with some excellent musicians I met down in NZ.
Musical highlights from the trip include:performing at and meeting the folks behind Vitamin S in Auckland, playing through the evening with Jeff Henderson, heading to Moxham with Jonny Marks and Dave Morrison, aka Alphabethead, to hear them as The All Seeing Hand, and a lovely jam-and-bolognese with Reuben Derrick and his wonderful family. Thanks to all for such a great trip!
Summer Lovin - June 1, 2012
School's out for the time being, and I'm off to New Zealand. Wont be much in the way of performances or new musics, but a lot of good stuff from the end of the year can be found at my works page: my recent chamber piece performed by the wonderful counter)induction, performances with the Columbia University Guerilla Orchestra and the Columbia Free Jazz Ensemble, and a trio + computer piece I wrote for the Columbia Jazz Composers Collective.
A Website Takes Shape - May 30, 2012
After much fiddling, design, and the like, the website is finally in good enough shape to be called a website! It is, however, far from going public, so consider these next few posts to be more historical documentation than breaking news.
This is my first real attempt at graphic and web design, so with any luck you can actually see this text and not an error message. Stay tuned for more info, recordings, patches, and tidbits in the coming days…